And So It Begins

Hmm, I bet you were thinking I was talking about the Bo Pelini Husker football era, right? Or a sharp upward turn in gas prices as Hurricane Gustav wreaks havoc on the Louisiana coastline? Wrong! It's my allergies. A week ago or so, I was babbling about how I had any of the effects yet this season. Well, they started today. I guess pollen levels have become saturated enough to reach my trigger point, and indeed, levels are at their highest point this year. It wasn't bad today, but noticeable enough that I woke up congested and had a runny nose all day long. It started yesterday at the pool (last blast of the summer), but came full circle today. Oh well, it's only 6 more weeks, I can make it. Ha.

The Huskers did win yesterday. It was what it was. I think we're a slightly better team than last year, but still have a long ways to go. A new head coach, a new defense, I don't think we should expect miracles, but I believe progress was made over last season. I did buy the PPV game as I didn't want to miss the season opener to see what we've got. It was an OK game against Western Michigan, not a powerhouse by any means, but a win is a win.

Hurricane Gustav is forecast to make a direct hit just west of the city of New Orleans. Ugh, here we go again. However, this time, I think the region is much better prepared, and it's estimated that 95% of the area residents have evacuated. That's good, and everyone else that stayed behind have been told they will get no additional support. I think that's good. If they didn't leave, they should be on their own. It's estimated that this hurricane could cost up to $30 billion. That's unbelievable, but what's even more unbelievable, Hurricane Hanna will be right on it's heals and could hit in nearly the same area. Perhaps that's ideal, as the damage will already have been done.

I can't believe the summer is over. We did head down to the Mahoney State Park water park yesterday afternoon for one last summer swim. It was fun, but a little sad at the same time that summer will soon be over, and within a couple of months, snow may begin to fly. I hate snow. I hate the cold. Yet here I live in Nebraska, a place that can get downright frigid, and can get several feet of snow. I hate winter in general. When I retire, I'm definitely moving south. But not during hurricane season!

Allegy Bliss?

I'm not sure what is different about this year, but my allergies really haven't been a problem, yet. And, the pollen count yesterday and today have been at their highest levels of the season. Today, I mowed the yard and spent most of the afternoon outside doing various chores. Not a single problem. Last year, on any given day that I'd mow the yard, my allergies would go bonkers. I'm still taking Allegra, but something is different this year. I have no idea what, but after a day like today, spending a couple hours outside should have sent me into sneezing fits, even with the medication. Weird. I'm not complaining, but just waiting for the other shoe to drop when my watery eyes and sneezing attacks return after being outside for awhile.

On an unrelated note, I had a great weekend in Colorado visiting family. It was a quick weekend, but a good one nonetheless. Got to spend some time just talking, catching up, laughing a ton, and just having an all-around good time. I didn't win the card tournament, I never do, but that's OK, sometimes the experience is just as important.

Now, it's back to work. I could use a good vacation, but that doesn't come for another month when we go to Vegas for a few days. Looking so forward to that, but until then, there is a professional conference that I have to attend next week, and I have a few projects at work that need my attention too.

Hurry Up and Wait

I headed to work early this morning to meet our national Director. He was in town and it was recommended that we attend the meeting. It wasn't as exciting as what I had envisioned and probably wasn't crucial that I was in attendance. Oh well.

Then I hurried home to pack for my weekend trip to Colorado. I scrambled around, got everything ready, grabbed some lunch, and made it to the airport with about 1/2 hour to spare. I had already checked in online and printed my boarding pass, and was carrying on a bag, so no big deal. In fact, timing was perfect. I did check the flight status before leaving and all was good, but upon arriving at the gate, was informed that our plane would be about 1 1/2 hours late. Oh well. I'm not in a huge hurry, but sitting in an airport isn't fun. Although, having Internet access (as I type this message) will help pass the time.

Looking forward to a pleasant weekend. It's our annual family card party, and many of my brothers and sisters will be in attendance. Should be a nice weekend to just relax and have some fun!

A Banner Day!

The day started off oh so well. My wife and daughter got off to school OK, and I was actually on time for work with about 10 minutes to spare. I stopped to get a skinny latte and realized that I had enough points on my card for a freebie. Yeah. Then, I got to work and realized that we were doing a software upgrade today and my backup office would be doing all of my tasks for me today. Yeah. It was going to be a good day. Then, I dropped my Oakley sunglasses as I was taking them off my head to store in my locker. They fell on the floor and got a huge scratch in the left lens, right in the field of vision. Couldn't believe it. The rest of the day was OK, we spent a lot of time trying out new office chairs, and overall enjoying some free time. Then, I picked up my daughter after school, only my wife didn't know I was picking her up. I left her a voice mail message, but her phone broke and she had no signal to retrieve it. So, she thought our daughter had been kidnapped. Nice. Got home and realized that the two trees that we planted earlier this summer were dying. They're in sprinkler zones and the yard is getting enough water, but apparently not enough deep watering for the tree roots. Ugh. The Northfire maples appear to be going into early dormancy. Hopefully, they've shut down enough to protect themselves, but who knows. I gave them a drink yesterday since they appeared to be stressed and starting to turn orange. Today, half of one of the trees is orange and a few of the leaves have fallen off. Even better. I've managed to kill $800 worth of trees. Not sure if they're a total loss, but perhaps we can salvage them yet. I'm such a dumbass. My wife is pissy, I'm pissy, my daughter is pissy about school and the fact that she already has a LOT of homework on the first day. Oh, it's a banner day.

Where Did the Rain Go?

It's been a long time since it's rained, almost 3 weeks. Sure, I've got automatic yard sprinklers, but it would be nice to not have to use them. In fact, I very much enjoy having a beautiful looking yard. I have a lot of pride in my landscaping, and take great pains to make sure that I don't have any weeds, crabgrass, or chick weed. Although today, I did spend about an hour pulling weeds and nut grass from my shrub and flower beds, and along the fence line and under the deck. I hate weeds. I guess it goes back to my childhood days when my father would make me chop thistles for hours on end during those hot summer days.

School starts tomorrow. My wife is running around and still isn't ready, and my daughter informed me that she's 100% ready to go. I took my daughter to lunch today, to celebrate her last day of summer freedom. I gave her a choice, and she picked Olive Garden (which happens to be one of my favorite spots). It was very yummy!

I went shopping for some clothes tonight. We actually went last night too, but couldn't find sizes that I needed. I still couldn't find khakis in my size tonight, so I think I'll order them online. I need a size 32x34, and I really only like a specific style of Dockers. Wow, that's a hard size to find. Lot's of 32x32s out there, but I'm tired of wearing pants that are about an inch too short and ride up toward my knee every time I sit down. Sigh. I'm so picky. Ha. I also bought a new pair of jeans (since summer is almost over and I don't really have any jeans that fit me, and also since I haven't worn jeans in about 3 months since summer began). I ended up with size 31x34 550 Levis. Wow, I've never worn jeans that small before. I also bought a swimming suit on clearance. Didn't really need it, but couldn't pass it up for $7. It was a size small. Yippee! But yet, I still feel fat. It's that stupid belly roll that I just can't get rid of, and my moobs that really bug me. I think this fall, after Labor Day, I'm going to make a hard effort to bulk up and tone down. I really want this belly roll gone by Christmas.

Five years ago, my brother said I was the most impatient person he's ever met. Perhaps he's right. I can be impatient at times, but at other times, I really try hard to have an open mind and not be so judgemental. But, when dealing with stupid people, it's hard not to be impatient. Some people of just dumba$#!s I suppose. The lady in line ahead of me at Panera Bread tonight fell into that class. I just couldn't help NOT be impatient with her. Ugh. Stupid people.

Allergy Season Returns

It's that time of year when my seasonal allergies return. I'm severely allergic to ragweed, and the peek of the season runs from mid August through the first fall freeze. About two weeks ago, I got my Allegra prescription renewed and have been faithfully taking it every day. Even though the pollen count has been high over the last several days, I've not had a single symptom yet. I know the drug works, but just think the density probably isn't high enough to affect me just yet. Usually on days that I have to be outdoors, it gets very bad. time will tell, but I'm sure in another couple of weeks, I'll start to feel a little worse.

School Starts This Week

I can't believe that summer is over. It seems that school was just getting out and we had the whole summer ahead of ourselves. Now, 3 short months later, the fun is over and it's time for the kids to head back. In fact, a lot of the schools started this past week already while my wife and daughter start back next Wednesday. For me, that means a return to normalcy, but also means a return to homework, school meetings, projects, and occasionally being overwhelmed with a neverending list of things to do. Hannah will be in the 7th grade, which means a lot more responsibility too, and probably even more involved projects, reports, and activities. Sigh.

On unrelated notes, Michael Phelps won his 8th gold medal yesterday at the Beijing Olympics. The man is a machine, it's amazing at what he's accomplished. And, he may not be done, and could potentially have 2 more Olympics left in him? Crazy.

On one more unrelated note, I joined Facebook this past week. Ha. It's supposedly all the rage for adults now, and several of my friends have prompted me to set up an account. Ugh. It's not really my thing, but have to admit, it's been kind of fun at the same time. I'm sure the novelty will wear off pretty soon.

Curb Painting

A guy showed up in the neighborhood a couple of days ago and posted flyers about having your house number painted on the curb. I've heard of this before, and have seen the results. Actually, I do think it's a good idea, it's just that I've never taken the time to get it done. This sounded like a good opportunity to get it done professionally for $20. Sure, I could've bought the materials for a lot less than that and done it myself, but what fun would that be! I noticed not too many people in the neighborhood agreed as I could only find 3 houses that also though it was a worthwhile investment. Indeed, the end result looks pretty darn sharp. They used a reflective paint that kind of glows in the dark. They painted a black rectangle, then 4" white numerals inside. Looks good to me, and money well spent. Kudos to the guy that did it, he's found a unique way to make some money with not tremendously hard work.

Ah, Relaxation at Its Best

A few weeks ago, I joined a new gym, mainly for its close proximity to our house. Lifetime Fitness opened up a new location here almost exactly 1 year ago. I've got a couple of friends that go to that gym, and they have nothing but praise. I do have a membership to 24 Hour Fitness and only have a $20/year renewal (at least for now), although, sometimes the cleanliness leaves a lot to be desired at times. So, recently, I've been driving to the new location, which is about a 20-mile roundtrip for me. So, by doing the math, I decided to join Lifetime, which results in a 5-mile roundtrip now. Plus, they have executive locker rooms, provide towels, and have a huge list of amenities. They also have a pool outside with 2 water slides, which essentially is a great family draw to get more people in, especially during the summertime. The last few days, I've hit the pool just to relax and catch some sun. It's really nice, and actually quite relaxing, I wish I would have done it at the beginning of the summer. Lots of kiddos running around, but that's OK, sometimes it's good to be in a family atmosphere. Overall, am pretty pleased with Lifetime Fitness. Yes, I'll have to pony up a gym membership now, but honestly, it's a worthwhile price for the moment.

Great Deal on Airfare

In a couple of weeks, I'm taking a quick trip to Colorado to participate in my family's annual card tournament. My sister (who lives in Colorado Springs) took the trophy home last year, along with the tournament. I was initially planning on driving and possibly taking a couple of extra days for some much needed vacation time (since I've only had a staycation this year), but just couldn't swing the extra days away from work. But, to drive would be about 1200 miles round trip. Then my niece (who is a travel agent) informed me of an airfare sale from Omaha to Denver for $116. Wow, that's hard to beat, in fact, was so good, I booked it immediately. I'll rent a car in Denver and drive to Colorado Springs and in the end, still be ahead versus what I would have spent in gas, time, and energy to drive. Thanks Liz, really appreciate the travel tip!

Am I Too Thin

10 months after my weight loss began and I'm still keeping it off. I'm holding my own around 158lbs, and this seems to be a good weight for me, although I still have a little belly roll that I just can't get rid of. My administrative assistant told me yesterday that I looked too thin, and that I needed to gain some weight. She thought my face was too gaunt-looking. Honestly, I didn't think I looked too thin, and my wife thinks I look fine. Ideally, if I could lose this belly fat and gain about 5lbs of muscle, I'd probably be at my perfect weight. Oh well, I know one thing, I'm not going back to where I was, I love being a size 32 for jeans, and can even wear size small running shorts and size small tee-shirts. :)